<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<meta charset="UTF-8">
<title>The Long Way Home by Requiem</title>
<style type="text/css">

body { background-color: #ffffff; }
.CI {
text-align:center;
margin-top:0px;
margin-bottom:0px;
padding:0px;
}
.center   {text-align: center;}
.cover    {text-align: center;}
.full     {width: 100%; }
.quarter  {width: 25%; }
.smcap    {font-variant: small-caps;}
.u        {text-decoration: underline;}
.bold     {font-weight: bold;}
</style>
</head>
<body>
<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/28913217">The Long Way Home</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Requiem/pseuds/Requiem'>Requiem</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Stargate Atlantis</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Canon-Typical Violence, Episode: s02e03 Runner, Gen, Looping Character Keeps Dying, Time Loop</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-02-07</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-02-07</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-13 11:47:59</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>10,673</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/28913217</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Requiem/pseuds/Requiem</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Evan wakes up on P3M-736 with no McKay, no Ford, and no ammo. </p><p>And wakes up on P3M-736. </p><p>And wakes up—</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Aiden Ford &amp; Evan Lorne</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>8</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>21</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Collections:</b></td><td>Past Imperfect Future Unknown 2020</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>The Long Way Home</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><ul class="associations">
      <li>For <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/users/ChronicBookworm/gifts">ChronicBookworm</a>.</li>



    </ul><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Lorne and Ford are my favourite SGA characters so I was really excited to see your prompts for them!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Evan wakes up on P3M-736 sprawled across the forest floor where he'd fallen with no McKay, no Ford, and no ammo. He tries the radio, but still no Colonel Sheppard either, and no Teyla. His first mission in Pegasus is going great.</p><p>He staggers to his feet, head pounding fiercely behind his eyes, and raises Coughlin on the radio.</p><p>"No activity at the gate, sir," Coughlin reports, "but we haven't heard from you or Doctor McKay in over half an hour. I sent Billick and Sherman out to look for you about ten minutes ago."</p><p>"Call them back, I'm returning to the gate."</p><p>Evan's not looking forward to telling Doctor Weir he'd lost McKay as well and hadn't even caught a glimpse of Ford to soften the blow, but he's ultimately saved from making the call when Sheppard bursts out of the forest. Evan doesn't quite heave a sigh of relief, but it's a near thing.</p><p>Evan's got a mild concussion from hitting the ground the way he had that doesn't quite put him out of commission, but he's stuck guarding the gate instead of traipsing through the forest looking for McKay and Ford. Still, things seem to look up from then on—Evan can't quite shake the seed of self-doubt that tells him it's because he's not involved—even when the wraith come through the gate. Sheppard doesn't succeed in bringing Ford home, but everyone else comes out of the mission unscathed, and they've even gained a new potential ally.</p><p>Once everyone's on board, Evan dials up the gate and steers the jumper through the centre of the puddle.</p><p>And wakes up on P3M-736, sprawled across the forest floor. No McKay, no Ford, no ammo.</p><p>Evan remains lying on his back for a good minute, staring up into the canopy as he tries to figure out what's just happened. A dream? Hallucination?</p><p>He pushes himself into a sitting position and tries to raise Colonel Sheppard on the radio. When there's no response, he radios Coughlin instead.</p><p>"No activity at the gate, sir," Coughlin reports, "but we haven't heard from you or Doctor McKay in over half an hour. I sent Billick and Sherman out to look for you about ten minutes ago."</p><p>Evan's struck silent for a few seconds. He vividly recalls having had this <em>exact </em>conversation before.</p><p>"Sir?" Coughlin's saying. "Major Lorne?"</p><p>Evan shakes himself out of his thoughts. "Call Billick and Sherman back to the gate. I'll meet you there."</p><p>The next few hours pass by as if he's in a dream. Everything happens exactly as he remembers—dreamt? Hallucinated?—right down to the way his head throbs right behind his eyes: Evan returns to the jumper, Coughlin insists on shining a light into his eyes, Colonel Sheppard comes out of the bushes, and he dials Atlantis and returns with Doctor Beckett, who examines Evan and tells him to take it easy.</p><p>"Lorne, stay here and watch the gate with Coughlin and Reed," Sheppard orders, just like he had last time. "Billick, Sherman, you look for McKay. Teyla and I will join you once Beckett's done with Ronon."</p><p>The others depart, leaving Evan with Coughlin, Reed, and a growing sense of disquiet.</p><p>-</p><p>"Major?" Coughlin says, leaning in to Evan's field of view. "Something wrong?"</p><p>Evan blinks and realises that he's been staring at the same spot for a number of minutes now. "You're sure you haven't noticed anything strange at all? Lights? Movement? A sense of…déjà vu?"</p><p>"No, sir." Evan can tell that Coughlin's very carefully keeping his face impassive.</p><p>"Right. As you were, Captain."</p><p>As night falls, Evan tries to remember at what time the wraith had come through before. It hadn't been long after Doctor Beckett had completed his surgery on Ronon, so Evan radios Sheppard to find out how that's going.</p><p>"Beckett's done, I'm about to head out to look for McKay and Ford. How's it looking on your end?"</p><p>"Quiet, but…"</p><p>"But?"</p><p>"Just got a bad feeling, is all."</p><p>"You've been grounded too long, Lorne, if you've forgotten that at the core of every good pilot is a cool head and good instincts. If you've got a bad feeling, do something about it."</p><p>"Yes, sir."</p><p>Evan dials Atlantis and explains to Doctor Weir that he's got good reason to believe the wraith will try dialling in to 736. He comes up with some story about the tracker having been active for so long and one wraith already having found Ronon rather than trying to explain how he seems to have suddenly gained the ability to see into the future, and Doctor Weir agrees that there's no harm in keeping the wormhole open as a precaution.</p><p>Thirty-eight minutes later, the wormhole closes, and everything remains quiet save for some shouting and gunshots not too far away.</p><p>"That sounds like Colonel Sheppard," Coughlin says. "Should we help?"</p><p>"Colonel," Evan says into his radio, "Major Lorne here. We can hear gunfire; do you need backup?"</p><p>"No, Ford and I are just having a nice friendly chat, aren't we?" Sheppard replies. "You keep an eye on that gate and we'll be there before you know it."</p><p>"Roger that. Lorne out."</p><p>Evan considers the merits of dialling Atlantis again, but before he can decide either way, the gate lights up. He makes a break for the DHD in the jumper, but only gets three symbols in before a wormhole is forming, and activates the cloak instead.</p><p>"Colonel Sheppard, we've got gate activity!" he says into his radio as wraith darts are spat out of the gate. "Three wraith darts just came through."</p><p>"Great," Sheppard groans. "Everyone back to the gate, now!"</p><p>Billick and Sherman come back first with McKay and Ronon, then Beckett and Teyla, and Sheppard, alone. Evan doesn't ask about Ford this time, just dials the gate without being told and steers the jumper through the centre of the puddle.</p><p>And wakes up on P3M-736, sprawled across the forest floor. No McKay, no Ford, no ammo.</p><p>Probably not a dream, Evan decides as he picks himself off the ground. And he's never heard of a hallucination being like this, so not that either. What it does remind him of is an incident at the SGC a number of years ago. It was before he'd joined the program, but everyone eventually heard about the time Earth was stuck in a time loop for three months that only General O'Neill and Teal'c were aware of.</p><p>Evan doesn't have clearance to read SG-1's mission reports, but he remembers hearing that the loop was caused by some sort of Ancient device working in conjunction with solar activity. Well, there are plenty of Ancient devices in Pegasus, and 736 has plenty of solar radiation. Same thing, right?</p><p>Though he's only been through two loops—and already sick of waking up with a concussion, but at least the effects don't seem to accumulate between loops—from what Evan can tell, the pattern goes: the wraith dial in, they dial out, and the moment the jumper passes through the event horizon, the loop resets. So maybe they just have to get off the planet before then.</p><p>Evan radios Coughlin to tell him that he's on his way back, and takes two pills from the jumper medkit for his headache while waiting for Sheppard to turn up.</p><p>"Sir, I think we should get off this planet as soon as we can," Evan tells him.</p><p>"We will, as soon as we find Ford and get Teyla back." Sheppard looks around the jumper. "Where's McKay?"</p><p>"Ford shot me with a wraith stunner and took him."</p><p>"Great." Sheppard starts punching in Atlantis' address. "We're still not leaving without him. He's not thinking straight, but we'll bring him around."</p><p>Sheppard's somewhat infamous for not letting go of an idea once he gets it into his head, so instead of arguing, Evan says, "You were taken by a man named Ronon. He's a runner, someone the wraith put a tracking device into and hunt for sport."</p><p>Sheppard stops dialling. "And how do you know this?"</p><p>"You told me. Twice. I seem to be stuck in a time loop."</p><p>"Huh."</p><p>Evan gives Sheppard a quick rundown of what's happened, and tries to explain what he thinks is going on as best he can. Sheppard didn't have any experience with the Stargate Program prior to coming to Atlantis, but he takes the weirdness of the situation in stride, and asks Evan to come back with him to Atlantis to explain it to Doctor Weir.</p><p>Evan finishes dialling while Sheppard gets the jumper into position. The wormhole forms, Evan transmits his IDC, and when the all-clear comes back, Sheppard guides the jumper through the centre of the puddle.</p><p>Then Evan wakes up on P3M-736, sprawled across the forest floor. No McKay, no Ford, no ammo.</p><p>"You've gotta be kidding me," he says.</p><p>-</p><p>Evan explains it all to Sheppard again, this time with the addition that he can't seem to pass through a gate without the loop ending, and Sheppard goes back to Atlantis alone. He returns with a jumper full of scientists as well as Doctor Beckett and his equipment for treating Ronon.</p><p>"You lot fix the loop thing," Sheppard gestures at Evan and the scientists, "and we'll take care of everything else."</p><p>All kinds of scanners are unpacked from the jumper and set up around the clearing while Evan once more relays what he knows about the time loop to Doctor Zelenka.</p><p>"You ever heard of anything like this happening outside of the incident at the SGC?" Evan asks hopefully.</p><p>"Never," Zelenka says. "This is fascinating." He mumbles to his tablet in Czech as he wanders away.</p><p>When scans of the clearing and the gate come up empty, the scientists' attention turn to Evan, and he allows himself to be subjected to being hooked up to machines and stuck with needles. Amongst the commotion, he forgets entirely about the wraith until the gate starts lighting up.</p><p>Everyone runs for the safety of the cloaked jumper, and without waiting for the others to come back from the forest, Evan dials up the gate and sends the jumper through.</p><p>The next loop, he makes sure to put Reed on gate-dialling duty starting from twenty minutes before he thinks the darts come through. It works until the wormhole shuts down, then the wraith dial in before Reed can dial out, and Evan walks up to the DHD himself, dials the gate, and walks through the puddle.</p><p>The next loop, he convinces Sheppard to leave him behind when the wraith come. Sheppard flies the jumper full of personnel back to Atlantis while Evan retreats deeper into the forest to avoid the wraith. Even if this works, he'll only be able to stay on the planet for another day before radiation levels start getting too high, but it'll be an extra day of not having to keep explaining himself to everyone.</p><p>He's formulating a plan for temporarily taking up residence in a jumper in orbit until the stargate problem is solved when he finds himself sprawled across the forest floor in the middle of the day. No McKay, no Ford, no ammo.</p><p>So it looks like he either ends the loop early by going through the gate, or it restarts itself after a certain amount of time. The scientists hadn't been able to find anything conclusive the last three loops, so Evan forgoes calling them in this time and tries to find a way out himself.</p><p>First, he dials another planet in case it's just Atlantis that doesn't want him back, but he only wakes up back on 736 again. Then, he turns his attention to trying to change the events in the loops in case one of them is the trigger.</p><p>Evan convinces Sheppard to send Ronon through the gate first to another planet of his choosing by claiming the loop resets every time Ronon sets foot in Atlantis, but he's not too convinced himself it'll work, and isn't surprised when he flies the jumper through the gate and wakes up again on the forest floor.</p><p>The only other wildcard here is Ford, but Evan spends a loop trying to track him through the forest before deciding it's easier to bide his time and let things play out until just before the wraith come through the gate. At that point, Sheppard and Ford aren't too far away, and Evan finds them in time to catch the tail end of the argument they're having.</p><p>"I'll show you!" Ford's shouting at Sheppard as a culling beam bears down on their position. "You'll see!"</p><p>The beam looks like it'll just sweep by the two of them, but Ford braces himself to jump, <em>towards </em>the beam, and Evan acts on instinct, diving out of the bushes towards Ford.</p><p>He collides on-target with Ford's midsection, but Ford's quick and strong, much more so than Evan had expected, and he shoves Evan off him before they even hit the ground. The last thing Evan remembers is Sheppard shouting his name, and being enveloped in a bright flash of white before everything goes black.</p><p>Evan wakes up, not on P3M-736, but somewhere dark, restrained upright against a wall by strong, sticky webbing. The air is warm and stale, amplifying the stench of decay.</p><p>As Evan's eyes adjust to the darkness and take in the reddish glow of the organic walls, he comes to the sinking conclusion that he's on board a wraith ship. He'd read about them in the expedition's mission reports, and he has to say, the reports don't do the ships justice in adequately describing how awful it is to be on board one.</p><p>Evan's still got his vest on, but he's secured tightly enough in the cocoon…thing that he can barely twitch his fingers, let alone work a hand up to his knife so he can cut himself free. He doesn't stop trying anyway, given that he has nothing to lose by doing so. That is, until footsteps come down the hall, and a wraith stops in front of him.</p><p>It unceremoniously rips the webbing from the upper half of his torso, keeping his arms trapped, and presses its hand against the front of his shirt.</p><p>Pain erupts from the point of contact, spreading quickly to the rest of his body, which seems simultaneously set on fire and frozen in ice. There's nothing he can do except lie there, immobile, as the ordeal seems to drag on for hours. The satisfied, almost blissful, look on the wraith's face is the last thing he sees.</p><p>­-</p><p>Evan wakes up on P3M-736, and can't help checking the front of his shirt even though he knows he won't find anything. So pushing Ford out of the way of the culling beam equals bad, got it. Still, Evan's sure that Ford's got something to do with this time loop, and takes off in search of him instead of returning to the jumper.</p><p>Evan dies in two more loops and wanders the forest lost in another three until the loop resets before finally conceding and falling back to the series of events that had taken him the furthest through the loop, deviating only at the last minute to intervene in Sheppard and Ford's argument. He arrives a little earlier than he had before, and the wraith darts haven't found them yet.</p><p>"Colonel Sheppard!" Evan calls out. "We need to go!"</p><p>Sheppard doesn't give any indication he's heard. "Ford, we just want to help!" He's got his gun pointed at Ford, and Ford has his hands raised halfway in not quite a non-threatening manner. One hand lowers towards his sidearm.</p><p>"Don't!" Sheppard orders, but Ford continues to inch his hand downwards, almost in a challenge.</p><p>Sheppard fires off a shot, and it hits Ford dead on mid-thigh, but aside from a flinch, it doesn't seem to faze him. As he unholsters his pistol, Evan brings up his own P90 in response despite a warning look from Sheppard. Ford slowly raises his pistol, Evan glances over at Sheppard one more time to be sure he really doesn't want to take any action, and that moment of distraction is all Ford needs to take aim and fire.  </p><p>Evan wakes up on P3M-736.</p><p>It takes him a second to realise that Ford had shot <em>him</em>, not Sheppard. Well, he'd known that something like that might have happened when he'd interfered with the usual course of events. This time, he's not going to give Ford the chance.</p><p>Five minutes before the wraith dial the gate and come through, Evan slips into the forest, circling around to the back of the clearing where Sheppard and Ford will shortly meet up. Right on schedule, darts streak by overhead, and Evan's radio would be abuzz with chatter if he hadn't turned it off already. Three and a half minutes later, Sheppard and Ford burst into the clearing.</p><p>Evan takes aim, and pulls the trigger.</p><p>And wakes up on P3M-736, only, <em>wakes</em> isn't the right word, because he hasn't been stunned and is standing face to face with Ford while McKay babbles nervously in the background.</p><p>"You shot me," Ford says, matter-of-factly.</p><p>"<em>You</em> shot <em>me</em>." Evan frowns. "How did you know that?"</p><p>"We're stuck in the same time loop."</p><p>"Time loop?" McKay butts in. "Did you say time loop?"</p><p>Ford shoots him with the stunner. Off Evan's disapproving look he says, "Do you have any idea how many times I've had to listen to him blather on about the same thing?"</p><p>"Do you have any idea how many times I've woken up with a concussion?" Evan grumbles, though he can't disagree with Ford about McKay. "How do you know about the loop?"</p><p>"You mean besides the fact that I keep finding myself back here and everything keeps happening the same way?"</p><p>"I mean, why you?"</p><p>"Hell if I know. Why <em>you</em>?"</p><p>Evan shrugs.</p><p>"Nevermind why," Ford says. "How do we get out of it?"</p><p>Evan looks at McKay's prone form. "He could've helped."</p><p>"It'll wear off."</p><p>Ford keeps a wary eye on Evan as he sinks to the ground on McKay's other side, and Evan does the same.</p><p>"I've already had scientists from Atlantis come over three times," he says. "They couldn't find anything."</p><p>"You were the one resetting the loop early, then?"</p><p>"I thought I was the only one who knew about it. When does it usually reset for you?"</p><p>"When I wake up on the wraith cruiser."</p><p>"That's probably around the time we'd go back to Atlantis."</p><p>"One time, though, I managed to walk around for a bit before one of the wraith saw me. It shot me, and I…died, I guess."</p><p>"That must've been the time I stayed behind after the darts came through the gate. What about two loops ago, when I pushed you away from the culling beam?"</p><p>"I took off into the forest, away from Sheppard. Thought I'd gotten out of the time loop thing when it reset. You died, didn't you?"</p><p>"Yeah." Evan finds himself subconsciously rubbing the spot where the wraith's hand had been.</p><p>"So, what, we're linked? Either one of us goes through a stargate or dies, and the loop resets?"</p><p>"Have you tried going through the gate?"</p><p>"No, you've got people watching it."</p><p>"Well, I don't think it's worth trying until later. We'll only get another day here anyway until the radiation levels build up too much."</p><p>"For you, maybe. I've already been here a few days."</p><p>Evan looks over at Ford. "You're not looking so good yourself."</p><p>Ford bares his teeth. "It's not the sun. I'm running low on wraith enzyme."</p><p>"Is that why you wanted to be taken onto the cruiser?"</p><p>"Sheppard wouldn't let me go. I had no other way off the planet."</p><p>"Is that what you've been doing during the loops?"</p><p>"He keeps thinking I'll go back to Atlantis with him. It's kind of annoying having the same argument over and over again. I'm starting to think there's nothing I can say to make him change his mind. I'd forgotten he could be like that."</p><p>"You don't want to come back?"</p><p>"Not if he and Doctor Weir and Doctor Beckett are going to try and change me back. I'm better like this, I just need to make them see it." Ford looks over McKay at Evan. "What is it you do?"</p><p>"I'm Colonel Sheppard's XO." Ford's replacement, essentially, but it doesn't seem to bother him.</p><p>"Great!" Ford lights up, and the hopeful half-smile completely changes his demeanour. "He'll listen if we go together."</p><p>Evan still has his reservations about Ford despite how eager Sheppard seems to get him back, but since none of his plans have worked so far, he decides to go along with this one.</p><p>"He'll be with Ronon now. We can catch him when he comes back to the jumper."</p><p>McKay regains consciousness about ten minutes later, jerking upright with a start. "Major!" he exclaims. When he sees Evan looking over his shoulder, he turns around, sees Ford, and scrambles to his feet.</p><p>Ford laughs and jumps up, then laughs again when McKay hurriedly backs up a few steps. "Take it easy, McKay."</p><p>"You shot me!" McKay looks back and forth between Evan and Ford. "You—you—time loop?"</p><p>"Yeah." Evan brushes the leaves and dirt off himself as he gets up. "We're in one, but you don't know it."</p><p>"And you do?"</p><p>"Me and Lieutenant Ford are the only ones, apparently."</p><p>"Why you two?"</p><p>"You're the science guy, you figure it out."</p><p>"Fine, fine, but I'm going to need some equipment."</p><p>Evan leads the way back to the jumper, Ford trailing behind with his wraith stunner in hand. McKay alternates between babbling on endlessly about the space-time continuum and asking questions he doesn't give Evan enough time to answer.</p><p>"Of course, the whole point's moot if I've already told you this before," he finally says when they enter the jumper. Ford hangs back at the edge of the tree line.</p><p>"You weren't around, but Doctor Weir sent some scientists over. Three times, in fact."</p><p>"Who?"           </p><p>"Nearly the entire physics department. They couldn't find anything, but maybe having you here will make a difference." Evan's sick enough of time looping that he doesn't mind buttering up McKay a little if it gets him to do better work.</p><p>"I'm sure it will," McKay declares as he dials the gate. "I <em>am</em> the foremost expert in stargate technology, you know. Granted, I've never had to personally deal with temporal anomalies as a result of gate travel, but honestly, I'm surprised we don't run into them more often."</p><p>"Fix this first; you can wonder why later."</p><p>The wormhole closes behind McKay just as Sheppard comes out of the forest.</p><p>"What was that?" He gestures at the gate.</p><p>"Doctor McKay went back to Atlantis," Evan tells him.</p><p>"What for?"</p><p>"To figure out how to break the time loop we're trapped in." Evan starts dialling Atlantis. "You're going back to get Doctor Beckett so he can get the wraith tracker out of Ronon, but once you get back, we need to talk."</p><p>Sheppard gapes at him for a few seconds, but eventually, as with Evan's own experience with the Stargate Program, Sheppard just accepts the words at face value. "We're going to talk alright." Sheppard points a finger at Evan. "The moment I get back."</p><p>"Why'd you let him go?" Ford hisses when Evan joins him back in the forest after telling Coughlin he'll be patrolling the perimeter.</p><p>"Remember the wraith? If Beckett doesn't get that tracker out of Ronon as soon as he can, we'll have even less time than usual. And don't forget that Teyla's life is at stake too."</p><p>"What difference will it make if the loop resets again?"</p><p>"And if it doesn't? For all we know, whatever's causing the time loop only lasts for a certain period of time, and it could stop at any moment. We need to act like each loop could be the last. Whatever happens, we might have to live with it."</p><p>"Fine." Ford holsters his stunner and hauls himself up a tree. "Come get me when Colonel Sheppard gets back."</p><p>Sheppard returns with Beckett, McKay, and the entire physics department.</p><p>"What's this about a time loop?" Sheppard asks Evan.</p><p>They get Beckett to Ronon and Teyla first, then Ford steps out of the underbrush he'd been following them from.</p><p>"Ford," Sheppard says. "You're in on this time loop stuff too?"</p><p>"Yeah, me and the major here."</p><p>"Why just the two of you?"</p><p>"Sir, we've had this conversation before and it hasn't gone anywhere," Evan says.</p><p>"Okay, I guess I'll just have to take your word for it." Sheppard looks warily at Ford. "You're not here to tell me you're coming back to Atlantis, are you?"</p><p>"Not unless you promise not to try and change me back."</p><p>Sheppard grimaces and gestures vaguely at Ford. "Look at you, Ford."</p><p>"Yes, look at me." Ford is staring Sheppard down intensely. 'I'm stronger now than I ever was. I can take down a wraith single-handedly. I can survive in conditions that would kill most humans. Why would I ever want to go back to what I was?"</p><p>"I know there aren't exactly a lot of mirrors out here, but you've gotta realise that you've…you're…well, to be honest, it looks like you're turning into a wraith. Sure, you get all the super cool powers now, but how long before you get the urge to start sucking the life outta someone?" Sheppard holds up his hand and emulates a wraith about to feed. "And don't you wanna go home? You've got family on Earth waiting to hear from you. They think you're MIA."</p><p>"Don't. Don't! You always do this!" Ford waves the hand holding the stunner, and Sheppard grips his P90 a little tighter. "You've always gotta bring them into this. Well, guess what? I'm doing it for them! What do you think will happen if the wraith get to Earth?"</p><p>Ford's getting more agitated by the second and Sheppard more uneasy, and with both of them brandishing weapons, it's only a matter of time before the situation escalates. Evan steps in to intervene, but when Ford turns to look at him he also brings the stunner around, and Sheppard reflexively responds to the movement by shooting. The darkness is replaced by midday sun.</p><p>-</p><p>"What's something I can say to you next time so we don't have to go through this all over again?" Evan asks as he once again tries to convince McKay of the time loop, Ford already having stormed off in frustration. "Something no one would know if you hadn't told them."</p><p>"Well…" McKay fiddles with his glove. "My first name's actually Meredith."</p><p>"Meredith?" It takes all of Evan's self-control to keep a straight face.</p><p>"Don't tell anyone though!"</p><p>"Don't worry, your secret's safe with me."</p><p>Evan catches McKay up with the research the scientists had done in previous loops, then sits in the jumper and waits for the usual chain of events to unfold: Atlantis sends scientists, they run some tests on him, take scans of various locations on the planet, debate vigorously amongst themselves, but ultimately can't come up with a cause or solution. At least when the loop ends, Evan can definitively rule out 736's unusually high radiation as a potential suspect.</p><p>-</p><p>"Your first name is Meredith, we're stuck in a time loop, and it's not caused by solar flares or radiation."</p><p>Ford's still there, and he raises his eyebrows in amusement as McKay sputters and tries to parse all the information Evan's just thrown at him. To his credit though, the man <em>is </em>as much of a genius as he is annoying, and gets right to work once the initial shock wears off.</p><p>Ford reluctantly follows Evan back to the jumper this time, and allows himself to be poked and prodded so the scientists have a larger sample of test results to examine. Evan thinks it's going quite well until Sheppard gets back and he and Ford get into another shouting match that culminates in Ford taking off into the forest. Evan sighs and waits for the loop to reset; maybe next time he'll know what to say to make that conversation go better.</p><p>-</p><p>Evan wakes up on P3M-736, sprawled across the forest floor. Ford is standing watch nearby.</p><p>"What'd you shoot me for?" Evan says with a groan, clutching his head.</p><p>"Sorry." Ford actually sounds a little contrite. "When the loop resets, I'm just about to pull the trigger. I've gotta be concentrating if I don't actually want to do it."</p><p>"Great." Evan fishes two painkillers out of a vest pocket and swallows them dry. "You get McKay up to speed, at least?"</p><p>"Yeah, I sent him back to the gate. But listen, we've let the scientists hack at this for too long without getting any results, don't you think?"</p><p>"Given that they've pretty much had to start from scratch each time, I think they're doing alright."</p><p>"Well, while they're doing that, I don't see why we've got to sit around and wait."</p><p>"What're you proposing?"</p><p>"I'm going back up to the cruiser. I think that's going to be the way off this planet."</p><p>"The last time you were on the cruiser, a wraith killed you."</p><p>"It took me by surprise. I won't let it happen again."</p><p>"Even if you manage to get off the planet using the cruiser, what then? Neither of us can ever go through a stargate again without ending up back here, and if either of us dies, the same thing will happen."</p><p>"So we'll never really die. You hate the idea that much?"</p><p>"Do I hate the idea of living my life never knowing if what I'm doing matters because it could all be reset on the whim of someone else? Do I hate the idea of living long enough to die of old age only to have to do it all over again? And again?" Evan's had nothing but time to think about the consequences of being stuck like this forever.</p><p>"Fine, I get your point." Ford looks down as he fiddles with the stunner. "But just so you know, I'd never reset the loop just for the hell of it."</p><p>"Really? What if someone you love dies? You wouldn't be tempted to do things over and try to save them?"</p><p>Ford's hands go still. "I might."</p><p>"Me too. But we aren't meant to have the power. We need to fix this."</p><p>­-</p><p>"I'm fucking sick of this." Ford throws his stunner to the ground in disgust and drops down heavily next to it. "I'm sitting this loop out."</p><p>"Ford?" McKay's eyes flicker between Ford and Evan. "Lorne?"</p><p>"Your first name is Meredith, we're stuck in a time loop, and it's not caused by solar flares or radiation, or as far as we've been able to tell, any sort of Ancient device." Evan can't quite keep the sigh from his voice. Maybe he'll take this loop off too.</p><p>"Huh." McKay's brain is no doubt running at a hundred thoughts per second right now. "How many loops?"</p><p>"Too many." This time, Evan really does sigh. "You should go back to Atlantis and try to figure this out. We'll be right here if you do. And if you don't, we'll be right here having this same conversation again."</p><p>"You want me to go back by myself?"</p><p>"You'll be fine." Evan waves him off and sinks to the ground. "Trust me, we've been through this before."</p><p>McKay stutters and stammers, but eventually does as Evan tells him, thundering off through the undergrowth in his ridiculous red suit.</p><p>"So, what'd you do to get stuck out here?" Ford asks after a few minutes of nearly-companionable silence.</p><p>"I have the gene." Evan figures he's asking about Pegasus in general, not just 736. "But I would have volunteered anyway. The chance to explore a new galaxy; I couldn't say no to that. You?"</p><p>"Same," Ford says shortly. Then he adds, "Notice you didn't come with the first wave of the expedition, though."</p><p>"I was on a long-term mission with SG-11 that wasn't scheduled to end until the expedition had left. I figured I'd hold out for the second wave, but I didn't think it'd be a year until we heard from you again."</p><p>Being stuck in another galaxy for a year cut off from everything you've ever known is bound to have created an insular community amongst the first-wave expedition members, something Evan had expected when he'd been rostered on the second wave, but there'd been none of the us-and-them mentality he'd been bracing himself for. There were casual touches and sleepless nights on the balconies when those who'd been through the ordeal together were drawn to each other for reassurance that everything was going to be alright, but as one of the new guys, Evan had never felt like an intruder or outcast. That might change if he never got out of this loop, though.</p><p>"It was a hell of a year." Ford puts his head back and closes his eyes.</p><p>"Look, if you're set on going to the cruiser, I'll come with you," Evan says after debating with himself for a few minutes. They've spent long enough doing things his way, and it's obviously not working, so why not try something reckless for once?</p><p>Ford cracks open an eye. "What for?"</p><p>"It's not like I've got anything to lose, right?"</p><p>Evan keeps his radio on a low volume over the course of the day in case McKay miraculously comes up with a solution, but ignores all requests from Sheppard and Coughlin to check in. An hour before the wraith dial in, Evan and Ford head away from the gate to a clearing where they'll be the only two life signs around for miles. Easy pickings.</p><p>"Start shooting as soon as you can," Ford says as they stand back to back in the clearing, weapons at the ready.</p><p>Evan's reluctantly turned over his P90 on the grounds that he'll be less capable of fighting after being rematerialised on the ship, and has his sidearm in his hands.</p><p>They don't have to wait for long before the whine of wraith darts fills the air, and beams of white light start sweeping over the forest before them.</p><p>"Get ready," Ford murmurs, and that's all the warning Evan gets before the forest disappears from view, almost instantaneously replaced by the foreboding interior of the cruiser.</p><p>Evan can both hear and feel Ford firing the P90, and he blindly pulls the trigger on his Beretta at every flash of movement he can see while his vision swims in and out of focus. His knees want to buckle, but Ford stands firm at his back, and Evan manages to keep shooting until there's nothing left to shoot at.</p><p>"You alright?" Ford asks as Evan sags against him.</p><p>"Just need a minute." Evan sinks to the ground, eyes closed, and passes Ford the spare cartridge for the P90 before blindly reloading his own pistol. He's barely got the magazine locked into place when he hears gunfire and briefly thinks about getting ready to shoot, but it sounds so far away, and he's so tired.</p><p>Then Ford's grabbing the back of his jacket and giving him a shake before hauling him to his feet.</p><p>"No time to sleep, Major," Ford says. "Bridge is this way."</p><p>"This plan is crazy," Evan mumbles as he stumbles after Ford. He feels lightheaded and weak, and is starting to wonder if he's more of a hindrance than a help to Ford. Ford, however, continues to wait for him to catch up at intersections rather than taking off by himself.</p><p>"Don't worry, I got more wraith enzyme and I'm feeling good." Ford's practically bouncing on his toes as he peers around the corner. "I'll get us out of here."</p><p>Ford almost single-handedly clears their way to the bridge, Evan getting in just one lucky shot that he'd instinctively fired off after a wraith had tried to sneak up from behind and startled him.</p><p>There are three wraith on the bridge, but none of them are prepared for Ford to come in and start blasting away.</p><p>"They never expect their food to be running loose around the ship," Ford explains as he discards the empty P90 in favour of a wraith stunner.</p><p>"You know how to fly this thing?" Evan's vision is more or less clear now, so he can't blame his eyes for the alien sight of the consoles before him. Three years in the Stargate Program, and he's never seen anything like this before. Despite everything, he doesn't regret coming to Pegasus.</p><p>"Not exactly, but the controls are coded to wraith DNA, so I'm the only one of the two of us who can. Unless you've changed your mind?" Ford holds up the feeding hand of the nearest dead wraith.</p><p>"No, I'm good."</p><p>Evan trades his sidearm for a stunner, figuring he can reasonably cover the two doors to the bridge from the centre of the room. It's an idea that's more easily said than done, though, as the cruiser dips and rolls and tosses him about while Ford tries to get a hang of the controls. Evan drags himself over to the centre console, the organic components of the ship giving way unpleasantly under his hands as he leans on them for support, but he can't read any of the output being projected onto the screen to try and help Ford fly the cruiser.</p><p>There's one thing he knows for sure, though. "Pull up, or we're going to drop out of orbit."</p><p>"I'm trying." Ford closes his eyes, and the muscles in his forearms tense as he throws all his concentration into communicating with the neural interface.</p><p>The ship gradually begins to level out, and for a moment, Evan thinks they might come out of this alright after all, but the ship's movements have drawn the attention of the other wraith on board, and they begin to pour into the bridge.</p><p>"Focus on flying the ship," Evan orders when Ford makes to come to his aid. "The more you learn now, the more likely we'll succeed next time."</p><p>"Next time?" Evan hears before a blast hits him in the chest.</p><p>He wakes up on P3M-736, McKay out cold on the floor next to him.</p><p>"Next time?" Ford repeats.</p><p>"We got pretty close, don't you think? We'll still have to figure out what to do with all the wraith on the cruiser, but it's the furthest from the original timeline we've ever gotten. I think it's an avenue worth exploring more."</p><p>Ford grins and steps over McKay's prone form to clap Evan on the back. "Let's do this."</p><p>This time, Evan doesn't shoot the wraith in the corridors in time, and it gets him with a stun blast. When he comes to on P3M-736, Ford admits to not being able to take the bridge by himself.</p><p>The next loop, the fight on the bridge takes just a little longer, and one of the wraith manages to raise an alarm. As reinforcements surround them, Evan and Ford exchange looks, and in one move, shoot each other to reset the loop.</p><p>The next loop, Ford manages to exert some control over the cruiser, but again, the jerky movements of the ship alert the other wraith that something is amiss on the bridge, and Evan and Ford are quickly overwhelmed.</p><p>It's two more loops before Ford successfully opens a hyperspace window, but the momentary distraction as a result of their success coincides with the changing of the guard, and Evan barely has enough time to register the door opening before the bridge is filling with energy blasts.</p><p>The next loop, Evan waits by the side of the door and takes out the wraith one by one as they come through. He drags the bodies away from the door so they won't be immediately visible to anyone who comes in, then joins Ford at the main console.</p><p>"Alright, I think this is a map of the galaxy." Ford brings up a hologram of what looks like stars, but it doesn't mean much to Evan since he's never had cause until now to learn about interstellar navigation.</p><p>"I don't suppose you'd know which one of these will bring us to Atlantis?" Evan asks.</p><p>"Atlantis?" Ford scoffs. "Why do we need to go there? This ship is ours; we can take it wherever we want."</p><p>"Putting aside the fact that <em>I </em>want to go back to Atlantis, we still need to fix this time loop problem, remember? And we've got a much better chance of doing that in Atlantis than anywhere else in this galaxy. Less likely to be shot on sight too, if we can figure out how to make radio contact."</p><p>Ford gives Evan a long stare, but he can't seem to come up with a counter-argument.</p><p>"Atlantis, then," Evan says. "Which way?"</p><p>Ford shrugs. "You're the pilot."</p><p>"I've been in this galaxy a week. More if you count the time loops, but none of that time was spent studying star charts."</p><p>"How's your wraith?" Ford zooms in on the map, and the small labels become legible but still read as complete gibberish to Evan.</p><p>"You're the one with the wraith DNA."</p><p>What a fine pair they make.</p><p>"Wherever we are," Evan says, "I think a more immediate problem is being on a ship full of wraith. There must be hundreds, if not thousands of them on this cruiser. We won't be able to hold our own against them for however long it takes us to find Atlantis."</p><p>Ford doesn't answer straight away, but presses a few buttons on the consoles and brings up a schematic of the ship.</p><p>Another press adds blinking lights to the map. Hundreds of them, scattered throughout the cruiser.</p><p>"Is that what I think it is?" Evan asks.</p><p>"If you're thinking it looks like a life signs detector, I'm thinking the same thing," Ford answers.</p><p>"Now what? We hunt them down one by one?"</p><p>"You've got a radio, I've got a radio." Ford shrugs. "As long as one of us stays here and keeps an eye on the wraith, I don't see why it should be so hard."</p><p>"Before we try that—is the bridge airtight, do you reckon?"</p><p>"Dunno." Ford raises an eyebrow. "What're you thinking?"</p><p>"I've got C4 and grenades, you've got control of the ship's systems, and wraith still have to breathe, right?"</p><p>"You want to blast a hole in the ship."</p><p>"And if you can control which doors are open or closed, those that aren't sucked out into space with the initial blast will slowly suffocate to death. Once all or most of the wraith are dead, we can seal off the depressurised parts of the ship and have the rest of it to ourselves." Evan has no idea if depressurising a ship in subspace is any worse than doing so in regular space, but he doesn't relish the thought of participating in a one-man wraith hunt.</p><p>"I like it." Ford grins. "Let's do this."</p><p>Ford keeps an eye on the life signs detector and remotely controls the doors to provide Evan with a more or less clear path to the other end of the cruiser. It would be easier to blow out the bottom of the dart bay, but in the event that they need to make a quick escape, the darts will be the surest way to get off the ship.</p><p>Once all the explosives that Evan is carrying on him have been placed against the thinnest section of wall they can find, he gives Ford the signal to start opening up as many rooms and corridors leading towards it as he can, excluding the alcove on the aft starboard side of the ship where Evan is taking shelter. It's the farthest he dares to get from the detonator without risking being out of range.</p><p>"They're coming quick and they'll find the explosives any second now," Ford says over the radio. "It's now or never, Major."</p><p>Evan flips the switch on the remote, and the cruiser shakes with the force of the explosion, quickly followed by a deeper shudder as air is sucked out through the hole. The organic nature of the ship means that the decompression isn't accompanied by the sounds of creaking, groaning metal as bulkheads strain against the sudden pressure differential, but rather, a kind of tearing and squelching that sends a chill up Evan's spine.</p><p>"I've gotta get out of here!" Evan shouts into his radio over the noise as he feels the pressure in the area he's in start to build up. "Tell me the way back to the bridge is clear!"</p><p>Ford directs him back through the maze of corridors that all look alike—at least on the <em>Daedalus</em> there'd been signage—and after what feels like hours of fighting against the motions of the ship, Evan makes it back to the bridge.</p><p>"Looks like we've gotten rid of at least half of our crewmates," Ford says. "The others don't seem to know what to do, but it's kinda hard to tell just looking at dots on a screen."</p><p>"Once there's no more oxygen, the dots should start dropping off." Evan sinks to the ground and leans back against the wall. "Until then, we'll just sit tight."</p><p>-</p><p>Evan's not sure when he closed his eyes, but the next thing he's aware of is Ford trying to wake him up.</p><p>"What's wrong?" Evan's hands instinctively go to his P90.</p><p>"Nothing, I think I know how to get back to Atlantis."</p><p>Evan pushes himself to his feet and follows Ford over to the console, which doesn't seem any more comprehensible than before. If anything, it's worse, with more illegible text rendered over the star map. Ford launches into an enthusiastic explanation of how he's been reading up on information stored in the console about various locations on the map and narrowing them down to find Atlantis that mostly goes over Evan's head as he tries and fails to follow along.</p><p>"—so it can't really be any other system than that one, see?" Ford finishes, pointing at one dot that looks a lot like the other dots.</p><p>"No, but if you say that's the way back, then I trust you." Not that Evan's got much of a choice unless he wants to take up Ford's offer of the wraith enzyme and try to fly the ship himself. In the worst case, they'll die somewhere in the middle of dark space, and the next loop, they'll know where <em>not </em>to go. "How long do you think it'll take?"</p><p>"I don't know how to read distances on this thing, but maybe…couple of weeks?"</p><p>"A couple of weeks?" Ford seems to be able to live off the enzyme alone, but Evan needs food and water, and what he's got on him will barely last the rest of the day.</p><p>"Yeah, I hope we don't run out of fuel or anything, I don't know how these ships work."</p><p>Great, another problem they hadn't thought of before embarking on this frankly suicidal journey.</p><p>"Oh, you probably need to eat and stuff, don't you?" Ford adds as an afterthought.</p><p>"Probably, yes."</p><p>"You know, there are some people out there who consider themselves wraith worshippers." Ford pulls a face. "They follow the wraith around, thinking they're some kind of…superior being, and I guess the wraith like it, 'cause some of them let these worshippers onto their ships."</p><p>"And if there were any on this ship, they would have brought supplies," Evan finishes. "Are we alone yet?"</p><p>Ford brings up the life signs detector on the console. "Looks like it, but I don't know if the wraith are capable of hiding themselves from the scanners."</p><p>"I'll be careful. You hold the bridge, that's the most important thing."</p><p>It's unsettling to come across so many wraith that look like they could just be sleeping or taking a break, but none of them rouse when Evan carefully tiptoes around them, and he eventually finds a room stocked with barrels of water and crates of long-lasting food carefully salted and sealed in clay jars. It's not going to be a pleasant few weeks living off this, but most importantly, he'll live.</p><p>-</p><p>The ship is on autopilot and as far as they can tell, they're the only living beings left on board so there's no need for them to confine themselves to the bridge, but they've come too far to get complacent now, so they take turns sleeping and finding ways to keep themselves busy. Ford splits his time between reading what information he can dig up from the console and harvesting wraith enzyme while Evan spends most of the first week hauling supplies halfway across the ship to the bridge. Ford offers to help, but Evan doesn't have anything else to occupy himself with.</p><p>After a week, Evan's out of crates to move—he's even moved some of the furniture onto the bridge to make it more comfortable—and there's nothing left to do but try to make conversation with Ford. Despite everything they've been through together, there's still a divide between them that can't be entirely blamed on their differing ranks. Ford clearly has some issues to work out with Sheppard and probably the rest of the expedition too; maybe Evan should try to clear the air before they arrive.</p><p>"Is there no chance I can convince you to stay in Atlantis once we get our problem fixed?" Evan asks early one morning when they're both on the bridge. His watch says it's about two a.m., but his sleep schedule's been thrown out of whack since coming on board the cruiser.</p><p>"You should be asking the others that," Ford says bitterly. "They don't want me back, not the way I am now."</p><p>"And you really don't want to change back?"</p><p>"Why should I? The enzyme's made me better in every way. Colonel Sheppard should be giving me my own squad! People should be lining up to be next! But instead, they all look at me like I'm some sort of <em>freak</em>."</p><p>"You know you won't be allowed to return to Earth. Not like this."</p><p>"It's a sacrifice I'm willing to make to keep Earth safe from the wraith. Why can't anyone see that?" Ford jumps to his feet, fists clenched, and stalks away. But just as Evan is about to leave the bridge to give him some space, Ford turns back. "Besides, it's reversible, right? Once the war with the wraith is over, I stop taking the enzyme, and I revert to my old self."</p><p><em>God, he's so young</em>, Evan thinks. Underneath the brave face is a young man who just wants to be told that everything will be alright, that everything he's been fighting for will be worth it in the end. Evan's seen that look on too many faces to lie to Ford now.</p><p>"Physically, maybe, but you might not be the same person anymore," he says carefully. "Could you live with that?"</p><p>Ford grits his teeth and looks away. "It's a sacrifice I'm willing to make."</p><p>-</p><p>Evan gives Ford a few days to cool off, then tries a different tack.</p><p>"I think out of any CO, Colonel Sheppard's the one most likely to give you a chance," Evan says after a sparring session in which Ford had thoroughly kicked his ass.</p><p>Ford forces out a humourless laugh. "Then I'm screwed, aren't I? Because even he won't listen to me, you saw."</p><p>"It wasn't exactly the best environment to be having that sort of conversation. And kidnapping McKay was probably the wrong foot to start off on."</p><p>Ford laughs again, and it sounds like he actually means it this time. "Alright, no kidnapping this time. What do you suggest?"</p><p>"He cares about you, you know. First thing he did when he found out you could be on 736 was put together a team to bring you back. 'A friend in need', he called you."</p><p>"That's why he thinks he has to save me. To bring back my old self. He won't listen."</p><p>"I've a little experience myself in making stubborn COs listen." Evan leans back against the wall. "Do you know Colonel Edwards? He leads SG-11."</p><p>Ford shakes his head and leans in to listen.</p><p>-</p><p>Evan's not sure if he can convince Sheppard to take Ford back as he is—nor is he entirely sure he <em>wants </em>to—but at least if Ford thinks he's got someone in his corner, he'll be less likely to bolt at the first sign of confrontation. And Sheppard might be more willing to listen to someone who can calmly lay out the facts, though Evan isn't sure how much weight his words will hold after being holed up in a wraith cruiser with Ford for however long it's gonna be.</p><p>Fortunately, not much longer. It's nearing the end of the second week when the cruiser automatically drops out of subspace with a shudder.</p><p>"We're here!" Ford exclaims, gripping the console.</p><p>There's an image of a planet on the screen now that seems vaguely familiar to Lorne; he hasn't yet had time to familiarise himself with the aerial view of the mainland, but it just <em>feels </em>like Atlantis to him.</p><p>"We should get in touch before they start scrambling jumpers," he says. "Can you connect to one of Atlantis's radio channels?"</p><p>"I'll try." Ford presses a few buttons on the console, then motions for Evan to start speaking.</p><p>"Atlantis, this is Major Lorne, do you read?" Evan also transmits his IDC and slowly counts to ten in his head before trying again. Halfway through his third try, someone responds.</p><p>"Major Lorne, this is Atlantis," says someone who sounds like Doctor Weir. "We read you."</p><p>"Mind telling us why the hell you're showing up on our scanners as a wraith cruiser?" asks someone who's definitely Colonel Sheppard.</p><p>"Well, I am on a wraith cruiser, sir. And I've got Lieutenant Ford with me."</p><p>"You've got <em>Ford</em>?"</p><p>"Yes, sir. We've got a hell of a story to tell you."</p><p>Ford takes the cruiser down for a water landing, and he and Evan are greeted by armed marines lining both sides of the pier with Sheppard, Ronon, Teyla, and another squad of marines waiting for them halfway.</p><p>"If you two gentlemen would be so kind as to hand your weapons over?" Sheppard says once Evan and Ford get close.</p><p>A marine on either side of the pier steps forward, and Evan turns over his P90 and Beretta to the one closest to him. Ford hesitates a little longer, but eventually he gives up his weapons too.</p><p>"Just a precaution." Sheppard motions for them to follow him, the marines with him bringing up the rear while the others on the pier move towards the cruiser.</p><p>Sheppard does his best to alleviate the awkwardness of having his current and former XO accompanied through the city by armed guards by striking up conversation first with Ford, then with Evan when Ford stubbornly refuses to answer. Evan learns that the last two weeks on Atlantis have been relatively quiet, in part because most of the recon teams have been reassigned to search and rescue duty on P3M-736. Evan's heard the stories, and of course knows firsthand Sheppard's determination to get Ford back, but it still manages to stun him how set Sheppard is on never leaving one of his team behind.</p><p>When they reach Doctor Weir's office, McKay is there too, wearing an expression of annoyance at being dragged away from his research that Evan already knows all too well. At least what Evan and Ford have gone through the last few weeks will be sure to capture his interest.</p><p>"Lieutenant Ford and I were trapped in a time loop on P3M-736," Evan begins.</p><p>-</p><p>"How will we know if the loop's been broken?" Ford is the first to speak once Evan finishes his recount.</p><p>"You could try stepping through the gate," Doctor Weir suggests.</p><p>"It took us two weeks to get here," Evan says. "If we reset the loop again, there's no guarantee we'll be able to perfectly recreate the events that brought us here. "</p><p>"Well, given that your only other option is to live the rest of your life never stepping through a stargate again, not to mention the time loop resetting every time you die…"</p><p>"Believe me, I've given that some thought," Evan says grimly. He glances at McKay, who's being uncharacteristically quiet. "Doc? Ideas?"</p><p>"You know, the SGC had a problem like this once," McKay begins.</p><p>"I know," Evan cuts in. "Solar flares. Ancient device. We've gone over this already. You didn't find anything on P3M-736."</p><p>"Hmph." McKay falls silent with a frown.</p><p>"Don't worry," Sheppard says, "we'll figure something out. In the meantime, why don't the two of you head down the infirmary and get checked out?"</p><p>"Nice try, but no," Ford says. He looks at Evan. "We shouldn't have brought the ship here."</p><p>"Look, Ford, we just want to help." Sheppard has his hands out in a placating manner, but out of the corner of his eye, Evan can see Ronon fingering his gun, and knows Ford must have seen it too.</p><p>In the blink of an eye, Ford snatches the pistol of one of the marines by the door and jams it under his chin, finger on the trigger. "Next time, we do it my way."</p><p>Everyone in the vicinity cries out in alarm, Evan included.</p><p>"It's been two weeks," he says. "Maybe whatever was causing the time loop has worn off."</p><p>"Maybe it hasn't."</p><p>"Either way, wouldn't it be better to err on the side of caution? Let's dial the alpha site or something, and go through the gate. We'll either end up back on P3M-736, which would have happened anyway, or we make it to the alpha site, and no one has to die." Evan looks between Sheppard and Weir, urging them to agree with his plan.</p><p>The two of them exchange long looks, then Weir finally nods. "Dial the alpha site," she says to the gate technician. "Tell them to expect Major Lorne and Lieutenant Ford."</p><p>There's no reason that they both have to go through the gate, but Ford doesn't object when Evan joins him on the gate room floor. They don't say anything, don't even look at each other, just walk in step towards the event horizon. One minute, they're in the gate room, and the next—</p><p>They're at the alpha site, the wormhole closing behind them with a whoosh. In front of them stand six marines at the ready.</p><p>"It's—we're—" Ford looks down at his hands and Evan can't help but do the same to himself, as if expecting the remolecularisation process to not have fully completed, leaving them stuck in a limbo of not-quite-solid existence. But no, they're all here, and it doesn't look as though major catastrophe has befallen them. It makes for a nice change.</p><p>"Sir?" Captain Robbins, CO of the alpha site, steps forward.</p><p>"Dial Atlantis," Evan says slowly, still unsure if he's actually here or not.</p><p>Back in the Atlantis gate room, everyone is exactly where Evan and Ford had left them.</p><p>"You're still here," McKay says.</p><p>"Looks like it," Evan says.</p><p>"So what broke the loop?"</p><p>Evan looks at Ford, but Ford only shakes his head, looking as perplexed as Evan feels.</p><p>"It <em>must</em> have been some sort of device, like there was on P4X-639," McKay muses. "Once you got out of its area of influence, the time loops stopped. You said you hadn't been able to leave the planet entirely until this attempt, right?"</p><p>"We did leave the surface of the planet a few times, and we even got into subspace once before the loop reset again," Evan says.</p><p>"Something in the system, then? I wonder what could have that range and still somehow manage to affect only the two of you. And why the two of you, specifically? You said I was there too at the start of each loop. Why was I kept out of it? And Colonel Sheppard sent a few teams back to the planet to look for you; why didn't they get trapped in a loop?"</p><p>"You're asking me?"</p><p>"Regardless of the explanation," Doctor Weir cuts in, "we don't want to risk this happening again, so let's put P3M-736 and its entire system on the do-not-travel list and put this matter to bed. Major, Lieutenant, can you please have Doctor Beckett look you over before we have any further discussions?"</p><p>Evan glances at Ford, expecting him to resist again, but Ford still looks stunned by the revelation that the loop has finally been broken—or maybe by the revelation that he'd so nearly killed himself for good just now—and follows Evan when he leaves the room.</p><p>Doctor Weir only sends two marines after them who follow from a great enough distance that it's easy to pretend they're not being watched. A lot of the people they pass in the hallways slow their stride or turn to watch the procession go past. They're mostly looking at Ford, but Evan gets a few friendly nods from soldiers he'd gotten to know in his few short weeks on Atlantis, and even a startled wave from Doctor Parrish who emerges from a doorway at the right time.</p><p>In the infirmary, screens have already been set up around two beds to shield them from curious eyes. The nurses don't tell them to lie down, so Evan sits on the edge of one of the beds while they take his temperature, heartrate, blood pressure, and samples of blood and saliva; all the works as per standard procedure for someone coming in from an unusual offworld expedition.</p><p>Once the nurses go, it's not long before Doctor Beckett comes by with a tablet in his hand. "Well, Major, I can't find anything wrong with you that a few nutritious meals and a good night's sleep won't be able to cure," he says to Evan. "I don't see any need to keep you under observation, and I'd be happy for you to return to your quarters to get some rest. Provided you promise to actually rest, that is."</p><p>There's bound to be stacks of paperwork waiting for Evan in his office, but more enticing is the thought of his own bed, its military-issue mattress a veritable luxury compared to what he'd had to put up with on the cruiser. He doesn't want to leave Ford alone though after all his protestations against coming back to Atlantis.</p><p>"I'll be good," Ford says with a wry quirk of his lips when Evan looks over at him. "I promise."</p><p>Evan hops off the bed. "I'll stop by tomorrow and see how you're doing."</p><p>"I'm sure you've got more important work to do."</p><p>"I'll see you tomorrow," Evan repeats firmly, as much a promise to Ford as it is asking Ford to make him a promise.</p><p>Ford looks him in the eye and nods, and Evan feels free to make his way to his quarters, assured that he won't be woken in the middle of the night by a city-wide manhunt.</p><p>His room is slightly dusty, but everything is as he'd left it, down to the bed he hadn't made properly in his rush to leave for his first mission in Pegasus.</p><p>As his eyes shut and his consciousness drifts away, Evan thinks he hears a voice in his head that doesn't speak so much in words as it does in a series of sensations like Ancient tech in the city does when he touches it.</p><p><em>Thank you for bringing him home</em>, the voice says, and a comforting warmth envelops him as he falls asleep.</p>
  </div></div>
</body>
</html>